Gold Beach

Gold Beach, the centre beach of the five designated landing areas of the Normandy Invasion of World War II. It was assaulted and taken from defending German troops on June 6, 1944 (D-Day of the invasion), by units of the British 50th Infantry Division.

The landing area code-named Gold Beach was more than 8 km (5 miles) wide and included the coastal towns of La Rivière and Le Hamel. On the western end of the beach was the small port of Arromanches, and slightly west of that port was the town of Longues-sur-Mer.

The defending German forces consisted of elements of the 716th Division and at least part of the 1st Battalion of the excellent 352nd Division at Le Hamel. Many of the Germans were set up in houses along the coast, with the greatest concentrations located at Le Hamel and La Rivière. These fighting positions were vulnerable to naval gunfire and aerial bombardment and could easily be set on fire, but the Germans counted on a counterattack capability with Kampfgruppe Meyer, a mechanized unit of the 352nd Division based at the nearby town of Bayeux. This unit had practiced rapid maneuver to the beach to meet possible invasion attempts.

In addition to these defenses, atop a steep cliff on the outskirts of Longues was a formidable observation post that directed the fire of a battery of four 155-mm guns located a kilometre inland from the beach. Both the observation post and the guns were heavily protected with one-metre-thick concrete.

Gold Beach lay in the invasion area assigned to the British Second Army, under Lieutenant General Miles Dempsey. The assault sectors at Gold Beach were designated (from west to east) Item, Jig (comprising sections Green and Red), and King (also consisting of two sections named Green and Red). The assault was to be carried out by the British 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division, which included the Devonshire, Hampshire, Dorsetshire, and East Yorkshire regiments. The beach was wide enough for two brigades to be landed side-by-side, so the 231st Brigade was assigned to Le Hamel in Jig sector and the 69th Brigade to La Rivière in King sector. Number 47 Royal Marine Commando, attached to the 50th Division for the landing, was assigned to Item sector.

The objectives of the 50th Division were to cut the Caen-Bayeux highway, take the small port of Arromanches, link up with the Americans from Omaha Beach to the west at Port-en-Bessin, and link up with the Canadians from Juno Beach to the east. The 50th Division was also to take the Longues battery from the rear.

B.T. Whinney, veteran Royal Navy beachmaster, remembers Gold Beach on D-Day, June 6, 1944.Courtesy of the Eisenhower Center for American Studies, New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.

H-Hour (the time the first assault wave was to land) at Gold Beach was set for 0725 hours, one hour later than the scheduled landings on the American beaches owing to the direction of the tide, which moved from west to east and brought high water later to the British beach. But the wind on the morning of D-Day came directly from the northwest, piling up the water rapidly. The outer obstacles that the Germans had installed to damage and destroy invading landing craft were therefore under water before British demolition teams could get to them. Moreover, the demolition personnel came under fire from the beach, so that they failed to clear the obstacles. First to land were LCTs, landing craft carrying tanks; 20 of them struck mines, suffering moderate to severe damage.

Special Service troops of 47 Royal Marine Commando land at Gold Beach near Le Hamel on D-Day, June 6, 1944.The Trustees of the Imperial War Museum, London

Fortunately for the British, there was no German armour on the beach, and the infantry resistance was ineffective. (Most of the German strongpoints had in fact been nullified by shore bombardment earlier in the morning.) La Rivière held out until 1000 hours, and Le Hamel was in British hands by midafternoon. Meanwhile, 47 Commando passed south of Arromanches and Longues and pushed west to within a kilometre of Port-en-Bessin. The guns at Longues had by then been put out of action in a furious duel with the cruiser HMS Ajax.

Map of the British and Canadian beaches on D-Day, June 6, 1944, showing the initial amphibious and airborne assault routes and the areas of German resistance.Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

By the evening of June 6, the 50th Division had landed 25,000 men, penetrated 10 km (6 miles) inland, hooked up with the Canadians from Juno Beach on the left, and reached the heights above Port-en-Bessin. It had not cut the Caen-Bayeux highway or linked up with the Americans from Omaha Beach, but it had made an impressive start. The British suffered 400 casualties while securing their beachhead.

Map of the British and Canadian beaches on D-Day, June 6, 1944, showing the final Allied and German positions at the end of the day.Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.